Nashville Predators Recall Ufko, Svechkov and Schaefer From Milwaukee Admirals

The Nashville Predators notified the Milwaukee Admirals and the public on March 5 that they had recalled defenseman Ryan Ufko and forwards Fedor Svechkov and Reid Schaefer from their AHL affiliate as the club reworked its NHL roster after the trade deadline. “Nashville Predators General Manager Barry Trotz announced today that the team has recalled forwards Reid Schaefer and Fedor Svechkov and defenseman Ryan Ufko from Milwaukee,” the Admirals press release read.

Ufko arrives having piled up a career-high 44 points (11 goals, 33 assists) in 50 AHL games this season, ranking second among AHL defensemen in scoring and leading AHL blueliners with six power-play goals. The 22-year-old made the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic and logged his NHL debut on April 14, 2025 vs. Utah, recording 15:37 of ice time. The team and NHL release list Ufko at 6-foot, 174 pounds; a Tennessean story noted an alternate measurement of 5-foot-10, 181 pounds. Tennessean reporting also framed Ufko as the likely candidate to step into the spot vacated by Nick Blankenburg after that defenseman was traded.

Reid Schaefer provides a physical scoring option up front. Schaefer, 22 (9/21/03), is listed at 6-foot-5, 226 pounds and had six points (4 goals, 2 assists), 13 penalty minutes and 24 shots on goal in the first 27 games of his rookie NHL season after making his debut on Nov. 28 at Chicago. He scored his first NHL goal and registered his first fighting major on Dec. 2 vs. Calgary. At the AHL level Schaefer has 28 points (15 goals, 13 assists) in 31 games this season; his 15 goals are second-most on Milwaukee. Schaefer was acquired by Nashville in 2023 in the trade that sent Mattias Ekholm to Edmonton and was sent to Milwaukee on Feb. 6 ahead of the NHL’s Olympic break.

Center Fedor Svechkov returns after a midseason reassignment. Svechkov, 22 (4/5/03) and Nashville’s first-round pick in 2021 (No. 19 overall), had nine points (2 goals, 7 assists) in 49 NHL appearances this season, including one shorthanded goal, and averaged 12:03 of ice time per game before being sent back to Milwaukee on Jan. 29. He owns 26 NHL points (10 goals, 16 assists) in 101 career games and has posted 59 points (26 goals, 33 assists) in 80 career appearances for Milwaukee.

The recalls follow a flurry of veteran departures at the deadline. Michael McCarron was traded to the Minnesota Wild on March 3, Cole Smith was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights on March 3, and Nick Blankenburg was traded to the Colorado Avalanche on March 4; the Predators received a 2028 second-round pick, a 2028 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick in those deals. Tennessean and ProHockeyRumors coverage framed this as a deliberate youth movement, with younger call-ups mapped to the veterans moved.

Nashville also shuffled depth pieces: the Admirals announced Austin Roest was recalled from Atlanta (ECHL) after three games and five points, including his first professional goal on Feb. 28 vs. Savannah, and defenseman Christoffer Sedoff was assigned to Milwaukee. The March 5 recalls were announced as Nashville prepared for a home game against the Boston Bruins, signaling the Predators will lean on Ufko’s AHL scoring and power-play track record and Schaefer’s size and finishing touch while Svechkov provides centre depth as the NHL roster adapts to the post-deadline landscape.